Las Vegas: David Starr race notes

STARR BATTLES IN LAS VEGAS
"Driver Earns Hard Fought Top-20 Finish"
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA (September 26, 2006) - With one win and one pole
already to his credit at the old Las Vegas Motor Speedway, David Starr
was looking forward to scoring similar...

STARR BATTLES IN LAS VEGAS
"Driver Earns Hard Fought Top-20 Finish"

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA (September 26, 2006) - With one win and one pole
already to his credit at the old Las Vegas Motor Speedway, David Starr
was looking forward to scoring similar results on the newly configured
race track with his Red Horse Racing team.

After a full day of testing, Starr and crew chief
Jamie Jones hoped they had learned enough information about the
progressively-banked race track to help them land a top five finish and
keep their No. 11 team in the top five of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck
Series point's standings.

But Starr would have his work cut out for him behind the
wheel of the No. 11 Toyotaforklift.net Toyota as he qualified 24th for
the start of the race.

Starr had initial trouble making any progress on the field.
With the drop of the green flag, Starr fell back one position to 25th.
He complained to his crew that the truck was having some handling issues
as he was free getting into the corners and tight coming off of the
them.

The first caution at Lap 24 proved to be a much needed break
for Starr who was battling his truck. Starr brought his No. 11 Toyota to
the attention of his Red Horse Racing pit crew. The crew changed four
tires, added fuel and made a track bar adjustment. A quick stop helped
Starr to gain several positions on the field. He restarted in 15th place
when the green flag waved at Lap 29.

Although Starr picked up positions in the pits, the changes
didn't help the No. 11 Tundra as the team had hoped. By Lap 40, Starr
had slid back to 17th place and was being passed by faster race trucks.

By the third caution at Lap 51, Starr had settled into the
19th spot on the race track. He was still battling a handling condition
in the corners. The team elected to pit under the caution for four tires
and fuel. The Red Horse Racing pit crew also added a rubber to the right
front of the truck. The crew had some difficulty getting the rubber
placed, so Starr lost some positions on pit road.

Starr returned to the track for the restart at Lap 56 in
26th place. But again, Starr struggled to get the truck to competitive
form. By Lap 66, Starr had only gained one spot on the field. He
complained to his crew that the truck was still too tight from the
center off.

When the caution flag waved again at Lap 74, Starr pitted
in hopes of getting some much needed assistance. The team removed the
rubber from the right front, made a track bar adjustment and added fuel.
Starr returned to the track in 22nd place for the restart at Lap 79.

But again, Starr couldn't seem to make moves on the trucks
in front of him as he had hoped.

"I can't go anywhere," Starr told his crew under the caution
at Lap 87 while sitting in 23rd place on the track. "I can't get off the
corners and the other trucks are killing me down the straight-aways.
We're missing something. I just don't know what it is."

The team elected to pit under the caution for fuel only,
which meant that Starr would be able to make it until the end of the
race without stopping again. Starr returned to the track in 16th place.

When the green flag fell at Lap 95, Starr again struggled to
get his No. 11 Red Horse Racing truck going. In just 10 laps, he lost
four positions and fell to 20th.

"I'm not sure what to stay," Starr told his crew under the
Lap 106 caution. "We're just not going anywhere."

In a final effort to help their driver gain positions and
retain his spot in the points, the Red Horse Racing crew brought Starr
down pit road. The crew made a track bar adjustment, added fuel and
changed tires. Starr returned to the track in 25th place with the goal
of picking up positions on the track.

Finally, the changes seemed to help as Starr began to
steadily pick up positions from the trucks in front of him. Over the
final 40 laps of the race, Starr was able to gain five spots and salvage
a top 20 effort.

With his 20th place finish, Starr fell to sixth in the
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series point's standings. He is 358 points behind
leader Todd Bodine, and just 37 points out of the top five.

"It was a rough day out there for us today," Starr said. "We
just couldn't get the No. 11 Toyotaforklift.net Toyota running the way
it needed to be. We were battling a handling condition all night long
and that kept us from gaining any ground on the field.

"We can't have any more off nights if we want to make a run
for the top three in points or even this championship. We're too good
of a team, and I know that we can do better and finish this season on a
high note."

After a week off, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will
return to action on Sat., Oct. 7 at Talladega Superspeedway for Series
inaugural race at the track. The race will begin at 2:15 p.m. CT on
SPEED and MRN/XM Satellite Radio.